Dylan Astrup
Ventura, CA •
Now: refining fixtures at NAVSEA · training for fall paddling races · iterating on my recipe app
About
Mechanical Engineer at NAVSEA in Ventura working on test & evaluation for unmanned surface systems and shipboard networks. I like clean, reliable tools, sustainability/alternative energy, and building things that stand up to real use.
Experience
Mechanical Engineer — NAVSEA (TSRCN / SDTS)
Ventura, CA · Jun 2024–Present- Own maintenance & operation of the Self Defense Test Ship's remote control network (TSRCN).
- Designed & installed replacement shore antenna positioners/controllers; maintained ship/shore positioners.
- Troubleshoot comms issues; support field work (including operating gov-owned construction equipment).
Maintenance Engineer — NAVSEA (ICS)
Ventura, CA · Aug 2023–Aug 2025- Led supportability analysis for ICS: Maintenance Philosophy and FMECA using RCM principles.
- Facilitated cross‑functional working group (10+); mentored interns/new hires in FMECA methods.
- Helped manage $250K+ task budget; applied Scrum team practices to keep deliverables on track.
- RCM Level 1 (Backfit) & Level 2 (Classic) certified.
SMART Scholar Intern — U.S. Navy (NSWC PHD)
Port Hueneme, CA · May 2022–Aug 2022- DoD SMART Scholarship internship; supported engineering tasks at NSWC PHD.
Seasonal Advisor — Tesla (Sales & Delivery)
Irvine, CA · Jun 2021–Dec 2021- Part of a record-setting team, delivering 250+ vehicles in a single day out of Costa Mesa.
- Safely transported vehicles for customer pickup; assisted end-to-end delivery operations.
- Educated customers 1-on-1 on features and ownership basics.
Undergraduate Researcher — Co‑lead (UAV Wildfire Project)
Prescott, AZ · Sep 2020–Oct 2021- Co‑designed a long‑range endurance UAV for wildfire detection and survey.
- Experimented with hydrogen fuel cell and solar power sources; supported manufacturing/testing.
- Funded by ERAU Undergraduate Research Institute.
Quality Assurance & R&D Intern — Village Green Foods
Costa Mesa, CA · Jul 2018–Aug 2020- Ran quality tests on 25+ products/batches daily; triaged and managed failed batches.
- Assisted in R&D for 60+ new recipes; collaborated on trials and documentation.
- Maintained multiple database systems for inventory, purchasing, and recipes.
Selected Projects
ERH2 — Hydrogen Demonstrator
Capstone Lead
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Challenge: Design a hydrogen production & storage demonstrator for the ME department.
Approach: Led a 6‑person team; alkaline electrolysis unit + storage using lithium‑doped graphitic carbon nitride; integrated thermal sensors.
Result: Built and tested; retained as a departmental demonstrator.
Recipe Book
Live (Beta)
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Full‑stack app (React + Flask) for keeping recipes, scaling ingredients, and printing grocery lists.
Photos
Live
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Lightweight galleries and albums; fast rendering and simple navigation.
Blog
Notes
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Project notes, experiments, and small writeups—mostly for future‑me.